home is where
by ohmytheon
Summary: Meeting the parents of your significant other is always going to be nerve-wracking, even for future pro heroes. The only difference? Shouto meeting Ochako's parents is planned. Her meeting his dad? Not so much.
1. Chapter 1

**Notes:** This was a fic request about Todoroki meeting Uraraka's loving parents. I, unfortunately, fell in love with the idea and then thought about what would happen if she met Endeavor, so this turned into a two-parter. I already know what's going to happen in the next chapter though, so that's a relief at least. Also, concerning the past Izuocha and Todomomo, I decided that I didn't want this to be their first relationship. They're both eighteen. There's a chance that they dated before and it also opened the door for even more awkwardness and silliness. There is some angst in this, but for the most part, this is a veritable shit ton of fluff.

 **Disclaimer:** I don't own anything.

* * *

To be honest, Ochako had only seen Shouto nervous a handful of times. He didn't let his nerves get the best of him and, even if he did feel it, he very rarely showed it. Over the three years that they'd gone to school together, she could proudly say that she was not only better at reading him, but he had become more open with people. Still, they were in the hero course for a reason, so showing his nerves was not something he did. He couldn't let people know when he was anxious or afraid. There was no stopping those feelings completely, only containing them.

Sometimes though – usually the most trivial times for him – it couldn't be helped.

The last time she'd seen Shouto nervous was right before they had kissed for the first time. His entire face had turned a distinct shade of pink. It had been so innocent and sweet that she'd giggled. One of the first times had been when he'd half-admitted that he liked her as more than a friend. He'd not wanted to overstep his boundaries since Deku was his best friend and she and he had sort of dated in their second year. He had seemed so mortified with himself, as if he'd betrayed both of them.

It hadn't been nearly as big of a deal as he'd thought, seeing as how Deku had already figured it out and she and him had actually become stronger friends than ever before after realizing they didn't work well together as a romantic couple. Now a battle hero couple? Totally different story.

Today was different though. Shouto was not only a ball of nerves, but he was being very obvious about it. The whole train ride, he had been even more silent than usual, reminding her of their first year, but it was his distance that made her realize it. He had started when she'd slipped her hand in his, just like he used to do when they had first decided to see where they could go with a relationship. Ochako knew that she was a much more tactile person than he was, but it had warmed her when she figured out how much he craved it whenever she was physical with him in even the simplest and most innocent of ways, like he was trying to make up for all the times he had been starved of it.

"Hey," Ochako prompted quietly a few minutes before their exit. "Are you okay?"

"Hm?" Shouto turned his head slightly and blinked her way.

"You just seem really out of it, is all," Ochako said.

"I'm fine," Shouto told her, but even his voice was distant, like his mind was on another train going in the opposite direction. However, if he thought that keeping any emotion out of his voice would make it more difficult for her to see through him, he was dead wrong. If anything, it confirmed her suspicions.

Ochako squeezed his hand. It was his left one, still somehow warmer than his right despite the fact that he wasn't using his quirk. "If you're uncomfortable, we can go back to the dorms. You don't have to do this."

Shouto frowned. "No, no, I agreed to this. It's fine. I'm fine. Backing out this last minute would be incredibly rude and I don't want to make the wrong first impression."

"Silly." Ochako playfully rolled her eyes at him. "You wouldn't do that. They would totally understand. Either that or I could tell them that I got food poisoning from bad takeout."

"You do eat a lot of sketchy takeout," Shouto pointed out.

"Hey!" Ochako reached over with her left hand to gently slap him on the arm. "You don't get to call me out on my bad habits if I'm going to use them as an excuse." That earned her a faint smile from him. No matter how small of a smile that she got from him, it always warmed her heart, as cheesy as it sounded. "Seriously though, if this is too much or too soon for you…"

Shouto shook his head and this time he was the one to squeeze her had in reassurance. "I'm not canceling dinner plans with your parents because I'm nervous."

A voice over the train announced that they would be pulling up to their stop momentarily. She watched Shouto's eyes flicker to the sign that showed the name of their stop and then the doors that would soon be opening. Oh, he was so nervous. She could practically see him mentally planning an escape route should things go wrong. It was kind of funny, to be honest. She had seen him destroy multiple villains at once without blinking an eye, but here he was hesitating over meeting her parents.

"I don't know what you're so anxious about," Ochako said dismissively as she stood up and grabbed hold of one of the polls. "They're going to love you."

"And if they don't?" Shouto asked, following her to his feet. Taller than her, he held onto one of the handles above their heads. When the train slowed to a stop, he swayed into her space, brushing up against her body, and she took the opportunity to nuzzle into him.

"What's not to love?" Ochako asked teasingly, although she was telling the truth as well.

Shouto sighed. "You say that now."

Honestly, she didn't know why he was so insecure about this of all things. If anyone had to be insecure about something, it was her. After all, Shouto was, well… He was rich and she wasn't. There was no denying that his family had way more money than hers. He never bragged about it, so sometimes it was easy to forget, except like instances when she spotted his very nice name brand clothes. Distantly, she had been aware that he was rich in the beginning of their first year. His dad had been the number two hero for longer than they'd been alive, which meant that he made a boatload of money.

When they'd moved to the dorms and she'd seen his room, she had almost died of shock. One) the detail had been beautiful, and two) it had taken him a ton of work to get it done, but three) it had been obviously expensive. She'd been so embarrassed when he had seen her bland and barely decorated room. He hadn't commented on it though. He never did when it came to money. It just wasn't a thing he thought about, which was kind of a consequence of growing up with it.

Now that she was thinking about it, maybe she should have been more self-conscious about it. Shouto had and would never say anything, but what if her parents' quaint little apartment disappointed him? He could probably fit at least three of their apartments into his dad's house, maybe four. He wouldn't look down on her parents – he wouldn't look down on her – but all of a sudden, it felt like some anxious rat was gnawing on her nerves in the back of her mind.

Shouto must have noticed her sudden reluctance from the way she'd started to slow down because he came to a stop. She hadn't and their entwined hands jerked her back when he didn't follow. "What's wrong?"

Ochako chewed on her bottom lip. "Well…" He stared down at her, patiently waiting for her to gather her thoughts instead of prompting her. "I just don't want you to be embarrassed…by me…"

"Why would I be embarrassed of you?" Shouto asked, his brow furrowed. "I'm the one who is about to be subjected to interrogation by your parents."

Despite her brush with nervousness, Ochako giggle-snorted. Of course he would think of it like that. It was probably what his dad would do in order to make sure that the person dating his son met his perfect standards. He couldn't have his son seeing someone with a quirk that was incompatible with his half hot half cold quirk. But then, as quickly as he'd made her laugh with his unintentional joke, she sobered up and began to fiddle with her fingers. Honestly, why did she still get like this? There was absolutely nothing to be embarrassed about when it came to her family.

"Never mind, it doesn't matter."

However, when she tried to pull away, Shouto didn't budge. Short of activating her quirk on him, she was not going to be able to drag him with her. He hid it with clothes and the way he held himself, but now solidly in their third year, the boy was built.

Ochako dropped her head and sighed in embarrassment. "I'm just nervous that you'll see my childhood home and be, you know…underwhelmed."

At that, Shouto raised an eyebrow. "Are you worried that I'll judge your family for being poor?"

"No! I know you wouldn't do that!" Ochako turned bright pink. Okay, so she had kind of been worried about that. He wouldn't do it on purpose, but it was kind of hard not to think about him subconsciously comparing their two financial situations. "Oh, gods, I sound so petty, don't I? That's not… I'd feel the same way with Momo, I swear. No, wait, that's not good either. And I'm not embarrassed by them. They're incredibly hard-working and good people and I love them so much, but ugh, I just…"

Why were words suddenly failing her when she'd had them to soothe Shouto's nerves?

The moment Shouto set his other hand on top of her head, Ochako stilled and she lifted her gaze to stare into his eyes. When her stomach fluttered this time, it wasn't because of her insecurities, but at the simple touch. Maybe it didn't look like the most romantic gesture, but she had always found it sweet whenever Shouto did that to calm her down when she got worked up. It was like he was keeping her down to earth should she activate her quirk on herself and float away.

"Trust me when I say that you had more growing up than I ever did," Shouto told her in that straightforward way that always sent her heart racing. This time, it did some sort of belly flop as well. He'd opened up to her some about his past, but she knew that there was more to it. She hoped that in time he would trust her to tell her more, but for now, she was content for him to wait until he was comfortable.

Giving him a tremulous smile, Ochako nodded and they started to walk again, both of them filled with purpose once more. He was more confident now. She could tell just by looking at him that his nervousness was slowly ebbing out of him. In just ten minutes, they'd be at her place and he'd meet her parents for the first time. Yes, he was still nervousness, but that was to be expected. She'd probably have difficulty not ascending to space if she had to meet Endeavor, but Shouto was in absolutely no rush for that to happen nor did he care for it to ever happen.

And then Shouto came to a skidding halt the second she pointed out her parents' apartment complex. "Wait a minute. Did they meet Midoriya?"

Ochako cringed a little, a sheepish smile on her face. "Yes."

Shouto groaned at that revelation, which would've made her laugh if he was clearly not so distressed. "How am I supposed to compare to that? He's excellent with adults and meeting parents."

"Oh my god," Ochako laughed, "he really is though."

"I bet your parents loved him."

"They did," Ochako admitted, "but they were completely understanding when we decided to end things too. Even my mom commented on how great of friends we made."

It had taken them a month to get back into the swing of their friendship after their break up, but almost a year later, she couldn't be happier where she and Deku were with each other. And what she had with Shouto was different.

"He sets such a high standard though," Shouto said as he ran his fingers through his hair. It was a habit that he didn't do often, only under extreme circumstances. She loved running her fingers through his hair. It was perfect and soft. Plus, once she figured out that he liked it when she did that, she'd melted a little.

Right now though, Ochako couldn't help but tease him a little as she tapped her chin thoughtfully. "You're right. I should have dated Bakugou instead. Then you would've only had up to go."

Shouto gave her something of an alarmed look. "Tell me you're joking." She blinked up at him innocently and he twisted his lips into a frown. "I honestly can't tell."

Ochako dissolved into giggles, pulling her hand away from his so that she could hold both hands over her mouth. Sometimes she didn't know how he put up with her or even liked her. Luckily he wasn't angry or disgruntled over her joke, although he had a look on his face that suggested he'd be keeping a closer eye on Bakugou. One thing she had found out upon beginning her relationship with Shouto was that he was not a jealous person whatever. It took a long time to build up trust, but once that was done, he was very loyal and maybe even too trusting at times. That wasn't to say he was naive. He just…truly wanted to believe in people, even if he didn't for the most part.

Once they reached the apartment building, Ochako jumped a few steps above of him and turned around, reaching out for his hand again. He gave it to her without question. "Relax," she told him. "They've already seen how great you are during the Sports Festivals."

Shouto winced at that. "Some of those were not my best moments."

"Oh, I don't know about that," Ochako drawled. "You won the last one! It was pretty…attractive to me."

The look on Shouto's face told her that he knew exactly what she'd originally planned on saying. "You were going to make a 'hot' pun, weren't you?"

"It's too easy!" Ochako burst, a pout on her face. "And you make puns half the time without even realizing it, so to be frank, it's not fair." She loved cheesy jokes and she loved the ones that he made too. In their first year, she couldn't have imagined him joking around, but with their third year slowly coming to an end, he had gotten a lot better about, sometimes saying things that nearly had her and Deku almost crying with laughter. "Hey, seriously though, they're going to adore you, just like I do."

"But what if I say something stupid?" Shouto asked, standing stock still at the bottom of the steps. "Or accidentally insult them? Or come off as rude and distant?"

"You won't," Ochako reassured him. Slowly, his feet started to lift from the ground, her quirk having been activated on him, until he was horizontal in the air level with her face. It didn't seem to phase him one bit, her quirk being used on him. It had happened a few times on accident when they'd started holding hands and a few times before during hero training exercises. Every time he let out a slow breath like he could finally breathe. She smiled at him and took a backward step up. "You're smart. You're polite. You're very handsome and dress well." He rolled his eyes. "You're strong. You're loyal. You're perceptive. You're hard-working. You're funny."

Shouto frowned. "I'm not funny."

"Yes you are," Ochako insisted as she continued to carefully traipse backward up the steps with him floating in front of her. "But do you know what my favorite part about you is?" He looked at her as if he honestly couldn't fathom anything that she was saying, as if he couldn't reconcile those words with himself. "You're kind. All that power, all that strength, and you can be so gentle and _soft_."

"I wasn't aware that was a good thing," Shouto said.

"It's a great thing," Ochako told him, stopping on the second floor. She wanted to take his face in her hands and kiss him, but she knew that he'd want to preserve modesty anywhere near her parents and keep any PDA to an absolute minimum. Later. She'd kiss him silly later after this was all over. He moved in the air so that his feet were pointed at the ground and she released her quirk on him so that dropped in front of her. "I'm not expecting you to chat up a storm like my dad - and he does talk a lot - or smile and laugh a bunch like my mom - she's like her own sitcom show sometimes. All I want is for you to be yourself."

The way he looked at her now was suddenly so intense that it turned her cheeks pinker than normal. He wanted to kiss her as well, but was refraining from doing so. A little smirk quirked onto her lips. Later, she reminded herself. He had been so tentative in the beginning, but once he'd started to thaw out…

Best not to think of that while standing out front of her parents' apartment.

Only a few seconds had passed after knocking on the door when it swung open to reveal her father. "Ochako!"

She barely had the chance to response, "Dad!" before he swept her up in his arms, holding her close to him as she hugged him tightly in return. "Mom!"

Her mother appeared seemingly out of thin air and pulled her into a hug that made her cross into the apartment. She could feel Shouto burning with some sort of strained curiosity. She had warned him that her parents were very affectionate, but it was a huge difference compared to what he was used to. This was definitely not how his dad greeted him when he came home. She had also told her parents to respect his boundaries. When she and Deku had met them for dinner, her mother had hugged him like he was already their son-in-law. Deku was used to physical affection though. Shouto…

It was a work in progress, one that she gladly took on.

Stepping out of her mother's arms, she waved a hand at Shouto, knowing that he wouldn't want to presume and even hold her hand in front of her parents just yet. "Mom, Dad, this is Shouto."

As expected, he gave a polite boy. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Well, don't just stand out there, my boy!" her dad said cheerfully. "Come on in!"

"Dinner is almost ready," her mom added, turning on her heels and rushing back to their little kitchen with her dad in tow. "Why don't you set the table, Ochako? I hope you like soba!"

Her parents' exuberant responses must have startled him, but Shouto took it in stride, stepping inside after her so that she could shut the door. The hallway was a bit cramped with the two of them standing in it, so that Shouto's side was pressed into her. She gave him an encouraging smile and he took a little breath.

"Soba?" Shouto asked in a low voice.

Ochako gave him an embarrassed smile. "I may have told her that it was your favorite."

"How did you know that?"

"Because you took me out for some on our first sort of date and you slurped two bowls of it down like your life depended on it," Ochako giggled.

Shouto rubbed his face, looking tired already. "I was nervous."

"C'mon then, you can help me set up the table."

After kicking off their shoes (well, she kicked off hers; he carefully slid off his and set them to the side), they made their way into the dining room. It wasn't really a dining room seeing as how it was only separated from the kitchen by a counter and there was an invisible wall in between it and the living room, but Ochako had grown up thinking that it was one. She gathered all the bowls and such and passed them to Shouto, resisting the urge to use her quirk to make it quicker and more fun. Once everything was out, they worked together to set the table and she poured them both some hot tea. It had been chilly outside, not that either of them had been cold considering his quirk and her staying on his left.

"Can I get you anything else to drink?" her mother asked as she brought over the food from the kitchen.

"Tea is fine," Shouto insisted, still sounding stilted. It didn't phase her mom in the slightest nor did it bother Ochako. The first time he'd spoken to her that wasn't in a situation under duress had startled the hell out of her. She hadn't even realized that he was talking to her until she'd remembered that no one else was around her or could cancel out gravity.

"He drinks it all the time," Ochako explained as she filled her bowl. "I think he has an addiction."

"You'll have to fight Ochako over it then since she's a little tea fiend," her dad added as he sat down at the head of the table. It put Shouto directly across from him, which she knew would make him feel awkward but wouldn't back down from. Oh, those boys of hers… Every little thing was something with them.

Her mom sat down as well on his right across from her. "If you want something else, let me know. We've got a bunch of flavors from when they were on sale last summer."

Ochako couldn't help but blush at the comment, but Shouto merely nodded and said, "Thank you." Her parents didn't even seem to notice her response. She knew that he had caught it, but did nothing to point it out as she took his bowl from him to get him a helping. For some reason, it made a rush of affection towards him sweep over her, which was unfortunate since there was nothing she could do to show it right now.

Despite the addition to the table, dinner was a pretty normal affair. Her dad talked about how the business was doing (much better actually, but under the unfortunate circumstance of the recent bump in villain attacks that caused collateral damage, which neither Ochako nor Shouto commented on since they'd sort of been involved in them too) while her mom questioned them both about school (again they didn't talk about a few of the things that had gone on not directly tied to school). Neither one of her parents asked him about his family, not like they had with Deku, who could rave about his mom for hours. She'd specifically told them not to, despite their burning curiosity over the fact that Shouto was the Number One Hero's son.

As expected, Ochako did most of the talking for the both of them unless Shouto was asked a direct question. She could feel the alternating relief from him when she jabbered at length and then the spike of anxiety when he was brought to the forefront of the conversation. It couldn't be avoided, which he knew, but he took it in stride, looking all to the world except for her like he was absolutely collected. Yes, he was quiet and, yes, sometimes he gave short answers that could be misconstrued as rude. But her parents were her parents. If he thought that she was social and bubbly, they were on another level entirely.

"Graduation is coming up," her father said as her mother hopped into the kitchen to get dessert. "Do you have any plans?"

This question was for Shouto, as Ochako had already talked about hers with them before, and he knew it. She watched as he slowly twirled a chopstick in between his fingers, probably because he was out of soba to eat. He really was a nervous eater or at least hid behind it. "A few of agencies have offered me positions."

"Multiple offers?" Her dad raised an eyebrow. "That's impressive!"

The chopstick twirled a bit faster. "I'm not the only one. You should see Midoriya's list." Ochako nodded sagely. Ten offers? Bakugou had almost blown a hole through the U.A. dorms when he'd heard that.

"Anyone in the top ten?" her dad asked teasingly, as if he was trying to figure out just how popular Shouto was already. She knew that hero popularity meant very little to him. Outside of the whole 'your boyfriend's father is Endeavor' debacle, he didn't much pay attention. She'd nervously explained one day that she didn't know how popular she would get and he'd hugged her and swore that her simply being a hero like she dreamed was enough for him.

On the other hand, Shouto had quite a few big named contenders seeking him.

"Hawks' agency sent me an offer, although I don't know how sincere it was," Shouto slowly answered. She didn't like the idea of someone using Shouto as a prank, but it was kind of amusing at the same time. He had told her upon being surprised by the offer that Hawks and his father were often at ends with one another. Joining his agency would be a direct slap in his father's face. Even if it was a joke, he had considered it for that reason alone.

Another thing she'd learned about Shouto over the years: he could be casually petty. One time, when Bakugou was in a particular mood, he had loudly slurped on his noodles every time Bakugou tried to yell, interrupting him at least five times before he finally exploded. It had to be one of her favorite memories.

"Then there was one from Ryukyu," Shouto continued.

"Oh, that's the one our Ochako accepted!" her mom exclaimed excitedly as she gave everyone some green tea mochi. "Wouldn't it be sweet if you could work together?"

Ochako blushed. "I think the number two hero's agency is a much better fit for his goals."

"Ambitious, are we?" her dad prompted, leaning forward on the table.

"And then…" Here Shouto hesitated and the chopstick stopped moving. Ochako knew exactly where he was going with this. Her heart skipped a beat and she yearned to reach out and take his hand on the table, but instead, she clenched her hands into fists in her lap out of sight. "There was one from Endeavor."

"Oh." Her father sat up straight. "Your father, yes?"

The air immediately changed in the room. Her mother slowly sat down in her seat, suddenly quiet and hesitant. She looked ready to comfort like any mother would, but hung back out of respect. Her father tried to remain only faintly interested, but it was difficult to do. Shouto had been the one to bring it up, but it was obvious now that she had warned her parents to not do so. Ochako truly hoped he wouldn't be upset with her for presuming.

"He's the number one hero, so - ambition-wise - it would be the best offer to take." Shouto spoke in such a removed tone that Ochako's heart ached. He didn't have to talk about this. He knew that. He was trying to be open with her folks the way that they had welcomed him into their home so warmly. She had seen his head spinning at their freeness with physical affection and laughter. The only way to get involved was to open himself up to it, but that meant could be difficult for him. "He can't be the number one hero forever though. That's just fact. Eventually, he'll have to retire. I suppose he expects me to take over the agency after him."

"But do you want to do that?" her father asked.

Shouto blinked, looking a bit startled. "I…"

"Why did you decide to become a hero?"

A small grimace crossed Shouto's face. "I wanted to prove him wrong - that I didn't need him in order to become a better hero than him." He flexed his left hand on top of the table before relaxing it again. "I was young and stupid, not seeing the big picture."

Her mother smiled gently. "So why do you want to be a hero now?"

"I guess…" Shouto scrunched his face up a tiny bit in thought. "I guess because I want to prove to myself that I can be a better person, not just a hero. Maybe. I don't know. Do we need some profound reason?"

Ochako snorted. "Don't look at me: my reasoning for applying to U.A. was to make a lot of money."

"It was so you could help us better our lives, dear!" her mother admonished. "You've done so much since then."

Her father started to cut into his mochi with a stick and then pointed it at Shouto. "You do what you feel is right in your heart and that's all that matters. That includes which agency whose offer you choose to accept. It doesn't even have to be one of the current top ten heroes. Who knows? Maybe you can help propel someone more deserving to greater heights. Isn't that a part of being a hero? Being supportive of others and raising each other up?"

"Like a support beam," her mother teased, patting her father on the hand. "Listen to him, lecturing like this." She _tsk_ ed fondly and shook her head. "It's been too long since you've visited, Ochako."

It had been too long, but not for that reason. She could tell that her dad, loving but firm as he'd always been, was getting worked up over mere implications. Ochako had obviously not told them why they shouldn't rave about Endeavor or bring him up, just that Shouto didn't like the conversation to revolve around him. They must have picked up on Shouto's hesitance and that distant voice that she didn't even realize he knew meant that he was protecting himself.

"Why don't you two finish up your dessert while your dad and I clean up?" her mom piped up. "It's getting late. You'll need to head back to U.A. soon."

"No, you cooked dinner," Shouto cut in. "The least I can do is help clean." He glanced at Ochako. "Only…I don't know where anything goes."

Her father laughed. "He's offering to clean? Oh, Ochako, he's got better manners than you."

Ochako stuck her tongue out at her dad and shoved her last bite of mochi in her mouth. As she stood up from her seat, she leaned over to pluck some of Shouto's off his plate with her chopsticks and ate it before he could even protest. She gave him a smile and then started to gather the dirty dishes from the table. He simply shook his head at her and started following her lead. Their relationship aside, after two years of friendship, he had to be used to her sneaking food off his plate.

It was easy work to gather everything with the use of Ochako's quirk so they could carry everything into the kitchen all at once. Back when she'd been a little kid, she had tried to do this and unceremoniously dropped all the dishes in the sink at once, which had broke half of them. She was much more careful about it this time, pressing them down into the sudsed-up water before releasing her quick so that they only floated to the bottom of the sink. As she and Shouto stood next to each other, one washing while the other dried, she playfully bumped her hip into his and smiled up at him when he peered down at her.

"You didn't have to do that," Ochako murmured to him, content to be in his space again. His right side was a little colder, but not by much. She relished it anyways, wanting to lean her head against his arm.

"Do what?" Shouto asked. Ochako narrowed her eyes at him. He knew exactly what she was talking about and let out a sigh. "Your parents were so polite and friendly and I… Every response I gave as impersonal and I knew it. How can I win their approval if I don't even give them an inkling about who I am?"

"You're more than that though," Ochako pointed out.

"I know," Shouto replied, "but it's a big part about how I got to where I am today." She was holding onto a wet bowl, a towel hanging over it, and Shouto laid one of his hands on hers. "And that includes why I'm here with you."

Ochako tilted her head. "Oh?"

"That first time you ever used your quirk on me," Shouto told her. "I had never felt so free in my entire life. I had never known it was possible to feel like that."

"You just like me for my quirk," Ochako teasingly harrumphed, hip-checking him again and starting on the bowl again. She knew that wasn't it, but it was either joke or blush like crazy.

Shouto's hand fell away from hers, returning to wash the dishes. "It wasn't until a month later that I realized it wasn't your quirk that made me feel that way. It was you."

Ochako gave him such an embarrassed smile, desperate to bury her red face in his chest. "You say the cheesiest things sometimes!" But she adored it. Considering how tight-lipped and impassive he could be, there were also those times when he was so straight-forward with how he felt that she didn't know what to do. How was she supposed to respond to something like that?

"Thank you," Shouto said.

"Eh?"

"For inviting me to dinner to meet your parents - for convincing me to come," he continued. "It…means a lot. You trusting me like this."

"I've trusted you for a long time," Ochako pointed out.

Shouto took the wash gloves off and set them aside. "I never met Momo's parents when we were seeing each other." That caught Ochako off guard and her sudden pause must've alerted him to that. "She brought it up and they asked about me, but I…I made every excuse in the book. It hurt her feelings."

"Why didn't you?" Ochako asked. Shouto and Momo had dated around the same time as her and Deku, although they had ended he and Momo had ended things first. It had been an awkward breakup, which had made her appreciate what she had with Deku even more. They were much better now and Ochako counted herself very lucky that Momo had never once begrudged her for falling for her ex.

Gods, sometimes she forgot how ridiculous just being a teenager could be. They were about to graduate and just months ago she'd been fretting that Momo was going to hate her and Shouto had believed that he'd betrayed his best friend.

"I don't know," Shouto admitted. "Momo never pushed the topic - she's kind like that - but I took advantage of it. Maybe I was afraid that I wouldn't be good enough - that somehow my past would be a stain that they couldn't overlook. Maybe they would think I was broken because of my behavior."

Ochako turned to face him. "Shouto." With her parents out of sight, probably in the living room so they could compare notes about dinner, she took his hands in hers. "You are more than good enough, but more importantly, your past doesn't define you. It's not a stain. It's not you. Of course it shaped you. Life does that. But I wouldn't have you any other way than what you're comfortable with."

Shouto closed his eyes and sighed again. "You're making it very difficult not to kiss you."

She giggled a little at that and said, "Later."

He opened his eyes to peer at her. "I'm holding you to it."

Still holding his hands, Ochako tugged him out of the kitchen. "C'mon, we've still gotta say our goodbyes now. It takes about fifteen minutes." He gave her a look that was both surprised and wary. "We don't want to miss the last train or we'll have to stay here."

"Oh no." Shouto quickened his pace. "I'd rather not."

Because if they had to stay at her parents' place, then he definitely couldn't kiss her and he wasn't about to do that. This was one of those moments when Ochako thought she could love him. His occasional yet intense need for physical affection was just so heartwarming. As much as he had enjoyed dinner with her parents, he still wanted time alone with her that wasn't spent on a train. She could agree with that.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes:** This was so much fun to write that once I started I didn't want to stop. Unfortunately, my body desperately needed a nap and I passed out within thirty seconds on my lunch break, so I had to finish this after dinner. Did I stay at my aunt's so I could eat free food and write this? Uh, maybe so. Ochako is a badass. Shouto gets to experience even more awkwardness. Endeavor gets rekt. Thanks for reading! (Due to me writing an EraserJoke fic, I had the wrong name on my mind and kept switching it up. That has been fixed!)

* * *

Ochako had never been to his home before. Needless to say, Shouto had been more than a little anxious about it, but she had grown curious ever since he'd met her parents. Not that she wanted to meet his father or anything like that, but she wanted to know where he'd grown up. He wasn't ready for her to meet his mother. To be honest, he didn't know when he would be, but she never pushed the subject or even brought it up.

After much consideration, Shouto had decided that Ochako meeting Fuyumi and Natsuo would be the next best decision. After all, his sister had helped raise him and he and his brother had repaired their relationship after being kept apart for so long. They were the family that he wanted to show her off too. She'd blushed something fierce when he had told her that, mumbling that she wasn't that big of a deal.

She was to him though, no matter what she thought.

Graduation was literally around the corner, but a day out of the dorms had sounded like a good idea, even if the day trip meant going back home. They brought their textbooks and notes so they could study there. Ochako had not been excited about the prospect, but neither one of them could afford to slack off and she admitted that she was more worried about the comprehensive written test. It was noon when they got to the house. Fuyumi wouldn't be off work for another two hours. Studying was a good way to pass the time. It also served as a distraction for Ochako, who was also anxious about meeting his siblings.

Shouto had chosen this day specifically because he knew that his father would be out of the house all day. He had confirmed his schedule with Fuyumi and his hero agency. The latter had thought that he might want to visit and he'd let them believe that when the opposite was in fact the case. Avoiding him was key. The longer he could keep her away from his old man, the better. He didn't want him to ruin everything.

The truth was that his father didn't even know that he was seeing someone and he intended on keeping it that way. Even if he had seen the error of his ways long after the fact, he would at first base his opinion of Ochako on her quirk and position in class. He had approved of Momo after accidentally finding out from Fuyumi. It had unsettled Shouto more than he wanted to admit. His approval meant nothing to Shouto, certainly not when it came to who he was dating, but it had made him wary.

It had been unfair to Momo and Shouto still felt flashes of shame over it, even if she'd reassured him that he hadn't done anything wrong.

He wasn't ready for Ochako to meet his father. Things had improved between them and he had tried to improve to become a better father, but it would never erase the past. Forgiveness was not the same as forgetting. Shouto that hat he had perhaps forgiven his old man, but he could never be sure until the question was thrown in his face. It was easier to avoid it and keeping Ochako separate from that part of his life had suited him so far. Fuyumi and Natsuo had started to ask questions about the girl he was seeing and he wanted her to be a part of that at least.

Hanging out in his childhood bedroom with Ochako had been strange at first. She'd spent the first ten minutes gawking at everything and complimenting him on his decor and then another ten minutes blushing over the fact that they were in his bedroom alone. It had been one thing to hang out in each other's dorms. Usually they kept the door open, but even if they did close it for privacy, the walls were thin and their classmates were noisy. They rarely got much time to themselves when they lived with eighteen other students. She had rambled nervously about everything that popped into her mind until he'd rolled his eyes, dragged her to sit down with him on top of his mattress, and told her to calm down.

An hour later, they were comfortably situated on the mattress. Ochako was sitting up with her back against the wall while Shouto was lying down with his head basically in her lap, using her as a pillow as he leafed through his notes. She had a textbook resting on her right on the mat, a pen in her right hand as she played with his hair with her left. He'd found out early on that she liked doing that, but he loved it even more. There was something so soothing and gentle about the way she'd run her fingers through his hair, something intimate and close about the gesture that put him at ease.

Ochako huffed and dropped her head back against the wall. "I'm definitely not looking forward to this, but I'll be glad when these exams are over."

"It'll feel weird not having to study or train," Shouto mused without looking away from his notes. "I've been doing it for as long as I can remember."

Ochako's hand stilled in his hair for a moment before it resumed. "If anyone deserves a break, it's you."

Her voice was light, but he could feel the sudden tension in her body since he was laying against her. He had opened up to her about his history. She'd actually cried, but then she allowed herself to feel things more openly than he did. It had embarrassed him, but she never brought it up again. His past was his to talk about and she left it alone. That didn't mean she was unaffected by certain aspects though when they did come up.

"We've been studying non-stop for days," Shouto said thoughtfully. "Maybe we should take a small break."

"My brain would love that," Ochako replied, closing her eyes. "What did you have in mind? A nap? Walk around the neighborhood?"

Shouto pulled his head from her lap and sat up straight. "I had a few things in mind."

"Oh?" Ochako opened her eyes to peer at him and then blushed once she realized what he was talking about. "Oh!"

Physical affection was something that he'd learned to become accustomed with thanks to his classmates. Dating Momo had helped him a little more, although she had been shy as well. Being friends with Midoriya and Ochako had been like a crash course in it though. By the time he and Ochako had started dating, Shouto was much more comfortable with such things, fond of them even. It helped that she was so soft and light in his hands, melting against him like clay. She'd hugged, grabbed his hand, and such when they had been friends.

It felt much different now that they were dating. The kissing aspect was quite nice too.

After setting his notes aside, Shouto put a finger under her chin and leaned forward to kiss her. Despite her shyness over being in his room, she reciprocated immediately, placing one hand on the mattress to steady herself as she leaned into him and another on his cheek. He could feel four of her fingertips on his skin, the pink pads that activated her quirk rougher than the rest of her skin. They sat like that for a while, kissing innocently, when she opened her mouth up to him and his heart stuttered in his chest. It always instilled a sense of trust in him when she did things like that and he couldn't help but want more.

Shouto could fully admit to being the more dominant of the two at least when it came to fighting or his quirk. She was feisty and ready to throw down when the occasion called for it. He certainly wasn't one to underestimate her in a fight. The last person to do that had been Monoma, who had not only been nearly knocked out but had made himself sick when he copied her quirk and tried to dodge her. It had rather brilliant and amusing. She would jump into an argument to defend her friends and nothing would hold her back while he usually chose to keep cool and not get involved unless absolutely necessary.

It probably would have been surprising to know that he was more dominant in this aspect of their relationship. Most people would assume that Ochako was since she was clearly more affectionate and the one open with her feelings. There was something about her that drew people in, him especially, that made him want for more. It was more than just her friendliness or the brightness that surrounded her. He could lose himself in that and not mind it for once.

He slipped his hand from underneath her chin to behind her head, his fingers digging through her long brown hair. She'd started to grow it out more in their second year to try a different style. Kissing her more insistently, he pushed her until she shoved her textbook onto the floor and was lying on her back and he moved so that his body hovered over hers, one hand on the mattress next to her head to hold himself up as he placed his other on her hip where her shirt had ridden up and one leg in between hers. It caused just the right pressure and friction to drag a mewling noise out of her that made him grin a little.

While one of her hands gripped his arm, the other found its way into his hair again, but instead of carding her fingers through it, she grabbed a handful and tugged. It wasn't anywhere near hard enough to be people, just insistent enough to let him know to lower his body against hers a little more and slide his hand up her stomach. She squirmed underneath him, panting into his mouth as he deepened the kiss. It was impossibly hot in his room, even with his quirk able to regulate his temperature. He pushed her shirt up further, her skin hot under his touch, and she was making that noise again that was beginning to drive him further.

And then he heard the front door open and slam shut.

The two of them immediately stilled, his lips still against hers and his hand resting against her upper stomach, but any sort of intimate mood between them had surely died. He pulled away far enough so that he could look her in the eyes. Her entire face was flushed, her lips swollen, and she was out of breath. What he noticed the most by far was the panic in her eyes.

"I thought you said no one would be home until Fuyumi got off work," Ochako whispered.

He furrowed his brow. "That's what-"

"Shouto, are you home?" his father's voice boomed from the front room.

A swear slipped out of him before he could stop himself. Ochako's eyes widened as he stiffened on top of her, his hand grabbing her side as if he meant to protect her. He wasn't in the position to do so and peeled himself off of her so that they could both sit up. She jumped to her feet while he ran his fingers through his hair. What the hell was his old man doing home? Fuyumi had said that he would be gone for the entire day and his agency had even confirmed it. This was the worst possible timing, the worst scenario, the worst everything.

Out of all the things to interrupt what was actually a pleasant moment at home, of course it had to be his father.

"What do you want to do?" Ochako asked quietly.

Shouto stared back at her. He liked to think that he was a quick thinker - he could come up with plans on the spot when facing an enemy - but in this uncomfortable moment his brain had stalled and failed him. He didn't know what to do. All he knew was that he didn't want his father to know that Ochako was here. It wasn't her and she knew that, but he didn't want them to meet. He didn't want to subject her to his father's opinions and judgment. In his panic, he couldn't think of a single thing.

Sensing his dilemma, Ochako offered, "I could go out the window?"

He glanced at the window in question and then shook his head. His bedroom was on the second floor, but that wouldn't be an issue with her quirk. Still, he didn't like it. No doubt the neighbors across the street would find a girl floating out of his bedroom window to be strange enough to bring up with his father. It wasn't like she could hide under his bed either.

Footsteps thumping up the stairs made both of them snap their attention to the door. "Shouto?"

"The closet!" Ochako hissed before snatching her backpack and bolting to the closet door. She ripped it open and jumped inside without looking before he could even respond. Just as she shut it, there was a knock on his door. At least he did that now. Back in the day, he would have just walked in without asking.

Taking a deep breath, Shouto dragged himself to his feet and crossed his bedroom to open the door. He'd grown some more since his acceptance into U.A. three years ago, but he still didn't match his father's towering height. He still had to tilt his head to look up at his father and he took up the entire doorway, imposing as ever in his hero costume and flooding the room with light from his flames.

However, as the two looked at each other, he allowed most of the flames to die down in an attempt to perhaps look more, well, normal. It was him letting his guard down to make things more comfortable between them. Maybe it helped. Maybe it didn't. At the moment, it didn't really matter since all Shouto could think about was the fact that Ochako was hiding in his closet and he'd been very happily making out with her minutes ago. He hoped she could keep quiet.

"I wasn't expecting you to come home," his father said in a slightly disapproving tone. "Aren't finals next week?"

"The dorms were cramped and loud," Shouto replied flatly. "I'd hoped to study in peace here."

His father's eyes flickered to the notebook and textbook on the floor. Thankfully Ochako had thought to grab her backpack too. That would've definitely made him question things further. Shouto's answer hadn't been a total lie. With finals so close, everyone was in panic mode at least a little. On more than one occasion the building had actually shook. Home wasn't exactly a peaceful place for him considering all the memories attached to it, but spending time here with Ochako had been nice up until now.

"You decided to come home to study?" his father asked. "Alone?"

Shouto didn't look away or blink, keeping the passive expression on his face. "That and Fuyumi promised to make dinner tonight." Again, not a lie. Fuyumi was making dinner. Sure, it was to meet Ochako, but his dad didn't need to know that. "I thought you were working today."

"I was," his father said, sounding vaguely suspicious over Shouto's knowledge of his schedule, "but I decided to switch shifts. I worked last night and this morning."

"So you're not working tonight?"

"No."

It took every ounce of willpower to not react when all that was going through his brain was, _Shit shit shit shit._

"We can have dinner as a family tonight," his father continued carefully. They hadn't done that in a few months and they didn't do it often. Something usually came up for Natsuo when their father joined them, which meant dinner with Fuyumi and their father like before. This time, Shouto doubted that neither Natsuo nor Fuyumi knew that their father had decided to come home early and they were both excited to meet Ochako. This was literally a ticking time bomb about to go off, especially since he'd already said that he'd come for dinner.

Shouto forced his hands to stay unclenched at his sides. "Sure."

What was Ochako going to do? Hide in his room all night and then sneak out? He couldn't do that to her. It was so unfair. This was absurd. Why had his father thought that tonight would be a good time to act like a father?

His father eyed him, a hint of suspicion still in his eyes, but then left and Shouto shut the door. It was hard to fool a man that did detective work as part of his job as a hero. He was one of the best at it.

As Shouto let out a breath, the closet door opened and Ochako peeked out. "Is the coast clear?"

"For now," Shouto sighed. That had been close, but they weren't out of the water yet. Short of faking something serious happening at U.A. that would require his presence, there was no getting out of dinner. That would cause his father to ask questions since he was the number one hero too. Maybe Midoriya could call faking some sort of emergency or ask him to train.

"I can just stay in here while you have dinner," Ochako told him as she stepped fully out of the closet and over to him. "I don't mind."

"No," Shouto said decisively. "I'm not hiding you."

Ochako gave him a little smile. "Kind of did that already."

Shouto peered at her. She didn't appear angry with him or upset in the slightest, but he was bothered. It must have shown on his face because she wrapped her arms around him and rested her head against his chest. Despite his nerves, he returned the hug and took another breath so that the tension bled out of him.

"I hate the way he immediately causes you to bring up walls again," Ochako mumbled, her voice muffled by his shirt. "It's like everything you've done to move past this comes back."

He would've liked to have said that wasn't true, but he couldn't deny it. His hackles still raised whenever he was alone in his father's presence. He'd gotten over it for the most part, having accepted that part of his life even if it did suck, but having Ochako so close had put him on edge all over again. She was one of his favorite parts of his life. The idea of his father being anywhere near her had activated the fight in his fight or flight response and he'd had to stop it.

"You've grown into a better person and a better hero," Ochako told him as she pulled away. "I can't stand to see him reduce you to something else."

"I'll get over it," Shouto said.

Ochako put her hands on her hips. "You shouldn't have to get over it. I know you said that he apologized and he's spent the past two years trying to be better, but it's not good enough." There was a fire in her eyes that would have made him smile if he hadn't been so unsettled. He thought he was protective of his friends, but it was nothing on her. "He should make the effort every day to do right by you, but you still freeze up and try to hide from him, like you're afraid of what he might say."

"That's not…" Shouto didn't know what to say, to be honest. The idea that he might still want his father's approval after all this time made his stomach roll. He did wall up and become closed off whenever Endeavor was concerned. No, he didn't become a resentful mess anymore, but he didn't react the way most eighteen-year-old almost pro heroes did around their dad. It was frustrating. When would he be _over_ this?

"I understand that you're worried about what he'll think of me or that he'll ruin things between us," Ochako said, making him tense up all over again. "I know you're afraid that I'll meet your father and see everything bad in you."

It was hard for him to admit that he was afraid she would see his father and think he would turn out the same way. Meeting Inasa had taught him that lesson. People were liked to confuse the two of them for each other with their attitudes and appearances. She didn't think he was anything like his dad, but what if she did spot the similarities between them? What if she started thinking that, since he'd not had a normal childhood, he would do the same with his kids? So focused on their future hero careers, they'd never talked about having kids before, but it was something he thought about here and there, if only because it did scare him.

"But that is never going to happen," Ochako told him, determination in her voice, "because nothing about him will ever affect how I feel about you."

Shouto dropped his gaze. "You say that now."

"I know that," Ochako insisted. "And you know what else?" She folded her arms across her chest. "If he ever did or said anything to hurt you again, I'd smack him so hard that he'd float into space and then we can find out how he deals with coming back into the atmosphere. I don't care who he is or how strong he is." Shouto opened his mouth to cut her off, but she pointed a finger and kept going. "No, I don't _care_ if he's the number one hero. I'm not afraid of him and I won't let some flaming trash can reduce you to the incredible person you've become."

Honestly, Shouto didn't know what to say. She'd never been so passionate or open about this before, if only because he'd never volunteered to talk about it a lot. It would have been the type of sweet thing that made him want to pull her towards him, if not for the fact that there was one huge problem.

Ochako finally saw the look on his face and her pink cheeks paled a little. "He's...right behind me, isn't he?"

Before he could attempt to rescue her from what might have been one of the most painfully awkward and also terrifying moments of his life (how angry would his father be that he had aired their dirty laundry to someone outside of the family - that she'd insulted him - that she'd threatened him - how furious-?), she turned around to face his father, looking up at him.

His father's expression was absolutely unreadable as he stared her down, which only made Shouto even more nervous. He clenched his hands into fists at his side now, prepared to defend her at a second's notice. There was no way to know how he'd react. They'd never been in a situation like this before. Even Midoriya, who knew about his history and had met Endeavor a handful of times, had kept his opinions to himself. Meanwhile, Ochako had given more than a piece of her mind and his father had heard everything. The last one to speak to him like this had been Natsuo, but that was family. She was an outsider to him.

"I…" Ochako swallowed and then something odd happened. The fear left her face, replaced by a tremulous but hard expression and the color returned to her cheeks. "I meant every word. Shouto means a lot to me. He's a huge inspiration and he's going to be the very best despite everything you did to him." She held out her hand. "Hi, I'm Ochako Uraraka. I'm a classmate of Shouto's - and his girlfriend."

Nothing happened and Shouto felt the seconds tick by as his father and girlfriend stared each other down. It was impossible to breathe, much less move. His left foot twitched forward when his father abruptly reached out and he thought for a brief second that Ochako was about to get hurt. He was half a second away from activating his quirk in his own bedroom on his own father when he took her outstretched hand and shook it. Shouto sucked in a silent gasp of air, picturing Ochako activating her quirk, but she kept her pinky finger out.

"I assume Fuyumi already knows to set out an extra plate," his father said, his voice coming out like a rumble.

"Yes," Shouto responded stiffly.

His father pulled his hand back and let out what sounded like a long-suffering sigh that regular parents did. He even looked tired, but not angry as he turned his attention back to Ochako, who stood her ground. "I remember you from the last Sports Festival. You cancel out gravity. It's a deceptively powerful quirk."

"I return it too," Ochako replied evenly. "Everything that goes up must come down eventually."

"Of course." His father's eyes flickered to the right and Shouto followed his gaze. Ochako's shoes were sitting next to his. He almost cringed. His father known all along that he hadn't been alone in his room. "I'll let you two get back to...studying in the meantime."

He turned around and shut the door fully behind him. Shouto realized that he hadn't closed it all the way the first time, which was how his father had seen and heard Ochako after he'd walked away. The second he did, Shouto let his shoulders slump and watched as Ochako's entire face turned red when she turned back to face him. The steely resolve that he'd witnessed seconds before melted into a panicky, embarrassed mess.

"Oh my gods, oh my gods, oh my gods!" Ochako practically squeaked, squishing her cheeks together with her palms. "I can't believe I just said that to the number one hero - no, to your father. I don't know what happened! I don't know what came over me. Shouto, oh my gods, I'm so sorry. I just knew that I couldn't take it back, not when I wouldn't mean it and I-"

Shouto interrupted her by storming to her, cupping her face, and pressing his lips against hers. She squeaked for real this time, but immediately melted in his embrace. He kissed her with as much heat as he could muster, as much passion that he felt. He kissed her like it was the last time he would ever kiss her and also the first one that he'd dreamed about instead of the shy one he'd given her. She was enthusiastic in return, although when he finally pulled away, there was a somewhat bemused look on her face.

"I love you," he told her very, very seriously. He had never been so serious about something in his life. Maybe he had felt like he could love her before, but it felt incredibly important to him that he tell her now. It was almost overwhelming, his need to let her know how he felt, maybe because it flooded his heart and mind.

A nervous giggle tumbled out of Ochako's mouth. Her cheeks were warm under his touch from the blush. "Shouto, I-"

"It's okay," Shouto cut in. "You don't have to say it in return."

"No, I-" Ochako stood on her tiptoes and kissed him again before throwing her arms around him and burying her face into his chest. She was embarrassed. "I love you too." She peered up at him. "I was just afraid to say it."

"You spoke to my father like he was nothing and you were afraid to say that?" Shouto asked, a little bemused himself. She was so silly sometimes. Maybe it was a normal thing to be scared of. Everyone had their own fears. He could understand that, considering that he'd been afraid of her meeting his father and she had blown all of his expectations out of the water and then some. To be honest, he'd pictured her being polite and fake sweet just to keep things civil, not be brutally honest and, in the words of Bakugou, rip him a new one.

Oh, Natsuo was going to _love_ her. He could already hear the jokes about marriage.

"See?" Ochako giggled. "Nothing to worry about."

"There's still dinner to get through," Shouto pointed out, although amusement bled into his voice.

Ochako's face fell only a little before she shrugged her shoulders. "I'll have you by my side. I'm good."

Shouto grinned a little. They were more than good. Besides, she was right. As long as they had each other, there wasn't anything they had to fear. They could overcome things together. That was what it meant to have someone that you loved.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes:** I wrote this technically for Shouchako Christmas Week! The prompt was "Family" and it was too good of an opportunity to miss out on. After all, there is one more parent that needs to be met...

* * *

Graduating from UA still didn't feel entirely real. Shouto kept thinking he was on spring break and would go back to school the following week. Except he didn't and he didn't the week after that. The fact that they had managed to graduate without any major fanfare, disaster, or villain attack was a feat in itself. Almost nothing could happen without something going wrong. He was positive nearly everyone had been on their toes the entire ceremony, just waiting for something bad to happen.

It didn't and the day passed smoothly.

The only awkward moment had come when Ochako's parents met his family for the first time. It hadn't occurred to Shouto that it would happen until he saw it about to happen. That had been close to a disaster in his eyes, even if it had ended up not being that big of a deal.

Somehow, Fuyumi had managed to wrangle both Natsuo and their father into sitting as a family, although she made sure to sit in between them. The awkward energy between the two of them had been palpable, but, in true Fuyumi fashion, she had pointedly ignored it and forced them to power through the entire ceremony together. It worked against him sometimes, but Shouto liked that she was more confident these days and was able to stand up to their father more.

After the ceremony was finished and parents rushed off to take pictures of their children, Shouto had sought out Ochako first. He knew her parents would want to see him at least briefly before he met up with his family. Instead the two of them witnessed her parents approaching his father and siblings and Shouto's heart had shot directly into his throat. The firm handshake and direct eye contact between the two fathers had nearly made Shouto ask Ochako to use her quirk on him and float him into the sun.

Well, he definitely knew where Ochako got her boldness from.

There was something about the way the men sized each other up that threw him off. One) he wasn't used to anyone being so direct with his father, who was still the number one hero, two) the height and muscle difference was absurd, and three) Ochako's father looked like he was in some sort of competition. It was just like Ochako when she had spoken to his father for the first time after he'd overheard her insulting him.

It hadn't been as bad as Shouto had expected. Ochako's parents were polite and friendly as ever. Fuyumi had been eager to meet them and, of course, ended up inviting out to dinner with them since the ceremony was over. He caught the look between them only because he was used to Ochako subconsciously making the same one, but before they could agree or decline, his father told Fuyumi to use his card since he regrettably had to return to his agency and did not want to come off as rude.

(Best graduation present ever.)

All in all, it had ended up being a great day. There had been only one thing missing from the day spent with both families: his mother.

Of course it had been a sore point that his mother couldn't be there for him. There had actually been talk with her doctors that she would be released soon. Shouto had been pushing for it, to be honest, going out of his way to talk with them and her about it. His father had taken himself out of the equation. Before, the doctors had deferred to him, but he no longer had any part in making the decision. Shouto thought perhaps she was more hesitant than anyone, if only because she had been there for so long and so much had changed since then.

Plus, there was the matter of where she would live. It wasn't like she wanted to move back in with her estranged husband, even if he was no longer the man he used to be when she went in.

That was why Shouto had worked so hard to find the perfect place to live. After deciding on what agency he would start out at, he had gone apartment hunting. It would be the first time he lived on his own, but, if he had his way, it wouldn't be for long. A few of his friends had thought it strange that he would search for a two bedroom place, seeing as how he wasn't the "guest bedroom" type and it wasn't like they believed Ochako would sleep in a separate room if she stayed the night, but no one questioned him.

He'd moved in a week ago. To be fair, he didn't have a lot of things. With Ochako's quirk and help from Iida and Midoriya as well, it hadn't taken long at all to move everything and unpack. After everything was done, they had ordered takeout to "break the place in". Shouto had kind of wanted Ochako to stay the night, but she had a very early day at the agency she'd chosen and something of a trip since she was living with her parents until she found her own place.

Some people had thought they might move in with each other, but it hadn't even been discussed. In all fairness, while they had known each other for three years, they had only been dating for around half a year and thought such a move was too soon. Plus, Shouto needed his own space for now. It had nothing to do with Ochako and everything to do with himself. He'd either lived under his father's controlling thumb or the pressures and absurdity of the UA dorms. Ochako herself had been excited for him to find his own place and had eagerly helped him, giving him tips since she'd briefly done it herself.

However, living nearly an hour away from each other was a lot more difficult than he'd anticipated, but they had both agreed not to let their relationship dictate their job choices. Besides, it was just an hour trip. If he got a car, it might even be quicker. He had to remain positive. Being with Ochako and friends with Midoriya and Iida taught him that.

With his living situation settled and his job secure, Shouto had thought this would be the best time for the next stage in his relationship with Ochako to happen. It was a very important one and it made him nervous almost as much as her. He wanted to tell his mother about the apartment and see what she thought about possibly leaving the hospital to move in with him - and he wanted her to meet Ochako.

When he had asked Ochako about it, she had been very excited, but now that they were walking down the hallway of the hospital, he saw the nervousness in her. It was probably what he'd looked like on the train to meet her parents for the first time. She hadn't been like this with his father, although that had been a strange and unplanned situation. She'd known about this for a few days and the nerves had built up inside of her since then. She was fiddling with her fingers, wringing them in front of her as she stared straight ahead with a deer in headlights look.

It was kind of cute, if he was being honest.

His mother had been touched when he had asked if he could bring her with him to visit. Of course she knew about Ochako. He had told her about her before they had even begun to date. It had been his mother teasing, " _She seems very important to you,"_ that he'd realized Ochako meant more to him than he had realized. All this time, he couldn't figure out what he was struggling with, only to realize he was fighting his feelings for his best friend's ex-girlfriend and one of his ex-girlfriend's closest friends.

"Hey, relax," Shouto told her.

Ochako let out a shaky breath. "I'm trying."

"Really?" Shouto gave her an appraising look. "I couldn't tell. It looked the opposite to me."

"This is your mom!" Ochako exclaimed in a whisper. "It's a huge deal."

"She's nervous to meet you too," Shouto pointed out.

"I know," Ochako sighed. "I guess that helps a little."

It was true that she'd been touched, but she had also been embarrassed over the fact that the first time she met someone so important in Shouto's life it was in a hospital. That didn't matter to Ochako one bit. He had talked with her about the situation when they had just been friends, back when he'd been with Momo actually. The protectiveness Ochako felt towards him with his father did not extend to his mother, who he had stressed was not defined by what had happened.

"What if she doesn't like me?" Ochako asked.

Shouto fought the urge to roll his eyes. "She'll like you. Fuyumi adores you and Natsuo still says you're his number one hero after what happened with our father." He also had been making some not-so-subtle jokes about marriage recently. If he made one of them around Ochako, Shouto might just have to shove him on his face. "I've already told her a lot about you, so consider this just a formality."

"Did you tell her how cute I am?" Ochako teased, grinning up at him.

"Of course I did," Shouto replied with a straight face. "I even showed her pictures on my phone."

Ochako blew a raspberry. "Stop it."

"And she, in turn, had me show the nurses so everyone here could know what a beautiful, sweet girl I'm dating," he continued in a serious tone, absolutely relentless. She burst into giggles. He wasn't joking about it - and she knew that - but he know how much she enjoyed his sense of humor. Making her laugh had caught him off guard at first, but after knowing her for so long, it was much easier to joke around with her. She liked to keep up charades as a joke and he never minded indulging her.

"You're so cheesy," Ochako giggled.

"The worst," Shouto confirmed as he stopped in front of his mother's room.

The laughter faded from Ochako as she stared the door down. It wasn't any different from the other doors, but he would've been able to make his way here blindfolded. He remembered how anxious and hesitant he felt that first day he'd come to visit after the Sports Festival. Ochako's face kind of reminded him of that now.

"Are you sure you want me to meet her?" Ochako asked in a weird voice.

Shouto gave her a look. She wasn't just scared about meeting his mother; she was scared about not meeting his expectations too. It was strange to find someone as nervous about such things as him. She was always so positive about others. He didn't know why it couldn't extend to herself. "Why wouldn't I want my mother to meet the girl I love?"

Ochako blinked up at him and gave him grateful look. She was so _weird_ sometimes. He loved it. Even though they were in public and he knew one of the nurse's was watching them while pretending to look at a chart, the look on her face compelled him to lean down and kiss her gently on the lips. It was a brief kiss, but long enough for him to feel her lips twist up into a smile.

"Okay, I'm ready," she said when they broke apart.

Nodding his head, Shouto knocked on the door to announce their arrival and opened the door to peer inside after he heard his mother call out. "Mom?"

"Shouto!" His mother beamed at him from her desk where she was writing. She'd taken to writing a lot since being in the hospital. He knew every son might say it about their mother, but he truly did think she was talented. "You're here early."

"Someone was anxious," Shouto said before pushing the door open fully to reveal Ochako next to him.

Without even stepping inside, Ochako immediately bowed and said, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs… ah…" Her face turned beet red as she struggled to figure out what to say, suddenly terrified that she might upset his mother in some way. It was just like when he had first met her parents.

Luckily, his mother laughed lightly. "It's okay. You can call me Rei or whatever makes you feel most comfortable. It won't offend me either way."

Ochako stood upright, an embarrassed look still on her face. "Of course. Um, you can call me Ochako? Or Uraraka! It doesn't matter." Shouto gently prodded her into the room. For a second, it had looked like she might bolt or accidentally activate her quirk on herself. Just in case, he kept a hand at her elbow. "I think it took Shouto about three months of us dating before he managed to use my first name and I thought he might pass out."

"I had just been punched in the face by Bakugou in class," Shouto mumbled in embarrassment. Of course that was why he'd struggled with using her name for the first time. It had nothing to do with the fact that it was an intimate detail or that he'd been daydreaming about it or he had just watched her absolutely demolish Bakugou a minute later and therefore win their team's match. Just thinking about it made him want to kiss her again, but he was in a room with his mother, so he definitely was not about to do that.

His mother began to put up her things from her desk. "Let me just get my stuff…"

"Shouto told me you write?" Ochako prompted.

"Oh." His mother laughed, her cheeks flushed a little. "It's not that big of a deal. Just something to pass the time." She waved a delicate hand in the air. "There's admittedly very little to do here."

"Don't listen to her," Shouto said as he stepped up to help her, putting her books back on her shelf. "She's written some really beautiful stuff."

His mother gave him a fond, if not a little embarrassed look before she walked to the small kitchenette area. "Do you want some tea? I've got some being made."

"Sure, I'd love some," Ochako replied. The kitchenette wasn't big enough or made to cook meals, but she could fix some tea. It was partly so occupants in her condition could continue to take care of themselves. She was no longer dependent on people, not like she'd been in those first few weeks here. He knew she was self-conscious about not being able to cook them an actual meal, but he had assured her it was fine. He could tell her a hundred times; it wouldn't make her feel one hundred percent about it.

Even though she wouldn't want to admit it, he also knew it was partly why she had never brought up meeting Momo. The Yaoyorozu family was well-known and affluent. Momo wouldn't have judged her in the slightest, but it had made his mother too uncomfortable. Did the fact that Ochako came from a more middle class family make things easier? He didn't say it and neither did she. He didn't think it made her look bad, but he knew that both his mother and Ochako would be embarrassed if it was brought up.

"She's a tea fiend," Shouto pointed out, referencing her dad's comment about her. She nudged him in the side, but he only gave her a soft smile and sat down in one of the extra chairs.

"When he was really little," his mother said as she started to pull out a few cups from the one cabinet, "he would hide and wait until I set my tea down. As soon as I looked away, he would dart over to drink it and hide before I returned."

She hesitated for a moment, the tea kettle stilling in her hand. He spotted the issue right away. The fond memory of him stealing her tea wasn't the only thing that came to mind in this moment.

"I did the same thing," Ochako said, jumping to the rescue. She had undoubtedly noticed the awkward pause and his mother's moment where she'd drifted for a few seconds, but she pretended like it never happened. "My parents had to start hiding it from me. They had to get creative since I could float myself to the top cabinets and fridge."

His mother took a breath, grateful the moment had passed, and poured the tea. "Congratulations on graduating, by the way." She poured their tea. "Your parents must be so proud."

"Over the moon," Ochako replied happily, "and a bit relieved too. I'm back living at home until I find a place close enough to work to not cost an arm and a leg in transportation." She took the cup his mother handed her. "Thanks. I had to move out on my own when I started at UA. They weren't prepared to be empty nesters yet, I guess."

His mother gave her a surprised look. "You were living on your own at fifteen?"

"Really learned to stretch that budget," Ochako said with a chuckle. That was an understatement. She had admitted to going meals without eating, having to choose whether to eat lunch or dinner when things got really tight. It was something he'd never had to worry about. As the number two hero Shouto's entire life, his father had made a lot of money. He didn't want to say that this facility was nice and cost a lot, but…

It was an unpleasant thought. He didn't want to think about it right now, not when he was supposed to be happy. Ochako could pinpoint every moment when he got lost in his head. She said a certain blank look came over his face and in his eyes. To be honest, Iida had learned to spot it first. It was both nice and sometimes frustrating to have people in his life that could read him so well.

"I kind of liked living with everyone in the dorms," Ochako said thoughtfully.

"Hm." His mother smiled at her. "A bunch of teenagers living under one roof? I'm sure you all got into plenty of trouble."

Both Ochako and Shouto blushed, although he didn't think his mother was implying anything. Still, the faint smile on her face was too knowing and sneaky. When they started dating, they hadn't done anything (too) inappropriate. While he more than enjoyed that side of their relationship, there wasn't enough privacy for one thing. Everyone was in everyone's business no matter what. That was why it had been such a struggle when he'd first realized he had feelings for her. It felt like it wasn't long before some of his classmates knew too. It had stressed him out.

"It was definitely an...experience," Shouto finally said. It was the truth. Growing up, once his quirk had manifested, he hadn't been allowed to hang around his siblings. Training took up too much of his time and his father thought that they would only be a distraction since their quirks weren't what he was looking for in a successor. He'd gone from being almost entirely alone to being surrounded by nineteen other kids his age. It had been overwhelming at first, but he had adjusted quickly.

"It was fun," Ochako said, "but I'm sure Shouto is excited to have his own place."

"I...do wish it wasn't so far out," Shouto admitted. He wanted to hold her hand. Judging from the way his mother's eyes flickered between the two of them, he felt like she could tell. She wouldn't have said anything, but he was still weird about public displays of affection in front of any authority figure.

Ochako set her cup of tea down. "It's a really nice place: great view, nice kitchen area, open concept, good location, and both bedrooms are spacious."

She gave Shouto a pointed look, which he caught onto immediately and made him swallow. Yes, the main point of this trip was so that his mother could meet Ochako, but the other part was so that he could ask her about the apartment. If left to his own devices, he would procrastinate and she knew it. He didn't know why he was nervous about that aspect of the trip. Maybe he was afraid his mother would say no.

It wouldn't exactly be rejection, but it would certainly feel like it and it had been a long time since he'd felt that come from his mother. A very, very long time.

"Actually," Shouto began slowly, "I was wondering…" He had to set his tea down. For some reason, his hands were starting to shake and he didn't want to rattle the glass or spill anything, except now he didn't have anything to occupy them and the tremble was still noticeable to him. (He wanted to hold Ochako's hand so bad.) His mother was watching him, a patient look on her face. "I was wondering if you wanted to come see it." He did his best not to fiddle with his hands, folding them together and and leaning forward to rest his forearms on his legs. "Your doctor said it would be good for you to get out some before…"

Maybe he was being too presumptuous. What if she didn't want to leave? What if she was scared? There was a lot about her life here and the circumstances surrounding it that he didn't understand. Had he only been thinking of himself when he had come up with the idea that she could move out of here? That he could give her a life outside of this institution? It wasn't his fault that she was in here, but he still wanted to, well, save her.

Was that selfish of him?

"You want me to come see your place?" his mother asked carefully.

"Yes," Shouto said, trying to sound firmer. "Ochako helped me pick it out and it's really nice, but it's… It won't be complete until you see it. It won't feel like home."

His mother considered his words, looking down at the cup of tea resting on her knee. He knew it was a lot for her to take in and think about, especially since he had kind of sprung it on her. He knew he should've talked with her about leaving the hospital before asking her this, but he'd gotten antsy. She'd been in here for far too long as it was. An entire decade had passed by. Ten whole years of her life, the world had gone on without her. He was graduated from high school. He was a pro hero.

But he wouldn't truly feel like one either until she was out of this place.

"I know it's sudden," Shouto said nervously, "but you don't have to answer me right away."

His mother looked out the window, a distant look in her eyes, like she was looking at something far away in her memory. Shouto couldn't take it anymore. He dropped one of his hands in between his and Ochako's chairs and she reached out to take it. They were at an angle where his mother couldn't see their hands clasped together, but she would be able to tell if she looked over at them. Maybe this was a conversation he should've had with only her, but a part of him had needed that boost from Ochako's presence to ask her in the first place.

"You really want me to visit?" his mother finally asked in a quiet voice.

"Yes, I do," Shouto replied.

His mother glanced at him. "Would it just be me and you or…?"

"It can be anyone you want," Shouto told her quickly. "We can invite Fuyumi and Natsuo to come. They would love to see you - and they haven't seen the place either."

"What about Uraraka?" his mother asked.

"I can come if you want," Ochako jumped in. "I'm not that great of a cook, so we might have to rely on take out or we can go out to eat. There are some really good restaurants in his area. We can go anywhere you want."

The gears were turning in his mother's head as she chewed her bottom lip. It kind of reminded him of Ochako when she was lost in nervous thought. His mother didn't do it very often, but then again, she'd never been in this position before. Maybe her doctor had hinted at her taking a trip outside the facility, but they never asked her or told her outright. She'd never had to consider it before. It was strange to think, but living in here made some things easier for her too. There was a lot she didn't have to think about.

He wanted her to be a bigger part of his life. He wanted her to have her own life - to live. It was important. How long had it been since she could make her own choices? This was the first one of many if she wanted. She could still say no. She could say she wasn't ready. He wouldn't begrudge her for it. Yes, he would feel disappointed and even a little rejected, but it was still her choice. Besides small things here and there - like what kind of tea she wanted to drink or what music she wanted to listen to or what she wanted to write - she didn't have a lot.

They could go anywhere she wanted, even if it was just eating in at his apartment. How long had it been since she'd been able to make a simple choice like where she wanted to eat?

Even though he had been on the outside, Shouto had felt the same way for the longest time: boxed in by someone else's decisions, his life planned out for him. Even when he rebelled, it was to get back at his father. It had never been about himself. He got better, but it had taken him time to fully grasp the concept that his life was his own. It had taken some time for his father to understand that too. It was his power, his life, his future, his decisions.

That was partly why neither he nor Ochako had considered moving in together right off the bat. He needed that time on his own and she knew that. It didn't mean he loved her any less. If anything, it made him love her more. She knew when he needed space, but she also knew he still needed and wanted her. Even though she must have known how much he'd wanted to hold her hand, she had waited for him to reach out to her first and she hadn't hesitated for a second to reciprocate that desire.

His mother looked at them, a soft and hopeful expression on her face. "I'd… I'd love to see your new home. I want to see the life you're building out there."

A warm, pleased feeling burned into Shouto's chest and he allowed a smile to cross his face. It might've been small, but it was extraordinarily happy and relieved. He had been scared that she wouldn't want to take him up on the offer. He knew he had to go slow. First, she could take this one trip out of the hospital and then, if it went well and she was comfortable, a few more to other places.

"And I think you should join us, Uraraka," his mother added. "You're clearly an important part of Shouto's life and I want to get to know everything."

"Oh, I know," Ochako said excitedly. "I can bring dessert!"

Shouto shook his head. "She has an incorrigible sweet tooth."

Ochako squeezed his hand. "One that you enable all the time."

"Good." His mother laughed lightly. "He _should_ spoil you here and there."

"He's really sweet," Ochako said, looking up at him. His cheeks burned pink. She looked back to his mom and gave her a big grin. "I should tell you about our first date. He was so cute."

Shouto let go of her hand so he could groan and hide his face. "Can you not? It's humiliating."

"It was adorable!" Ochako insisted. "I'd never seen him so nervous before. I was used to him being so smooth."

His mother's grey eyes glittered like icicles. "Oh, yes, do tell. I'm fairly certain he left a few details out."

He had indeed left a few things out because he'd been embarrassed enough, but she had wanted to know how it had gone and, in truth, he'd been excited to tell her about it. Maybe it hadn't been the perfect first date, but it had solidified his feelings for her and made him feel less shameful as well for falling for his best friend's ex.

Ochako winked at him before launching into excruciating and hilarious detail about their first date. Shouto sat back in his seat, face red, and simply listened as the two women talked. He'd done this with Fuyumi and Natsuo a few times, but there was something truly wonderful about watching his mother speak freely and happily with his girlfriend, who was equally happy. Any of the nerves the two women had felt about meeting each other slowly melted away with each laugh, smile, and fond look thrown in his direction.

That warm feeling, while it used to be fleeting, didn't leave his chest. Maybe he had been a little nervous about his mother meeting Ochako too, but not because he had been afraid she wouldn't like her. He knew she would. How could she not? He just… This must have been what Fuyumi felt. He wanted to be a family. He wanted them to be whole and together. He wanted everyone to be involved instead of separated like they'd been during their entire childhood.

And now they were and it felt damn good.

Growing up, after his quirk manifested, he hadn't known he could be this happy. He'd always assumed it would just be hero work and that was it. There would be nothing else for him. There would be room for nothing else in his life. All that would matter was becoming the number one hero, defeating All Might or whoever else was in his place. It was what he'd been raised to do - what he had been brought into this world to do.

He hadn't known that he could just live his life and be happy. His time at UA taught him that. His friends eased him into it. Even his enemies and rivals made him realize things about the world around him. And Ochako? Well, she was like a piece to the puzzle that he hadn't even known he was missing until she was right there next to him, fitting her hand in his, leaning into his side with her head on his shoulder. Every struggle and fight for the life he had now was entirely worth it and he'd do it all over again if it meant being with her.


End file.
